Time Lost
by MiniTurtleDuck
Summary: In the wake of disaster, Berk is left without their dear heir. That is, until one day years later, when he and his companion return with their own baggage, and news of an impending attack. Through painful memories, Hiccup must rise to his place beside his father in the midst of an old danger. A/H, implied A/S, other implied. R
1. Chapter 1

A/N: SO, hey there everybody. HTTYD is a new obsession, taking over my mind. I got a little bit of inspiration to start writing up a fanfic, so I figured I may as well post it, right?

A little clarity, before anyone starts reading, I really enjoy these older cast, future fics I've been seeing so this will be my go at one. It'll be a little different, since there are going to be some gaps in need of filling in.  
First of all, this chapter is a bit of a prologue, set a few years after the movie and series. Hiccup is nearing his eighteenth birthday here, all the other teens are of similar age. I assume that the dragon academy was established further while the teens were younger, then, once solid, some of our strapping young lads would leave with their fathers during some of the warmer months on raids or fishing trips. I can see that while the others return for the other half of the year on Berk, Hiccup (and maybe a buddy or two?) along with Toothless would venture to other tribes to proclaim that dragons are friends. In total, I can see that he would return for maybe three to four months to teach and live out the harsher months with the other Berkians.  
Living like this, up until the story begins, I can see that he would be one busy little duck, with less time for romancing and such. This is excatly how I want it, I want a fresher, more mature blooming between our sarcastic knight is a shining prosthetic leg and the lovely, albeit violent, Astrid.  
That all being said, from the end of this chapter, there will be a six year gap before the next. Many things are going to happen in that time, all of which will be relived through memories and such.

Hopefully, when this really gets going, it'll be easier to piece together!

Disclaimer: I do not own How To Train Your Dragon.

* * *

"Tend the sails! Tie down the baskets!"

Over the wind, the great Stoic the Vast's voice was somewhat audible. Amidst a roaring storm, two large wooden ships battled the sea. White capped waves battered the sides of each hull with a force nearly twice the strength of a dragon. Above, the sky was black, throwing down torrents of rain and hail upon the decks of the ships. Only seldom did a bright flash spring from behind the cloud cover to light up the raging waters.

Across each deck vikings were thrown about, trying to tie down what they could or steer through the choppy ocean. On each ship, a dragon did what they could to help their human companions. On one ship, a thickset gronkle attempted to steady the ship's weight, while using its body to hold a dozen fish baskets against a wall. A wide, blond teen tried to keep his balance while securing another few of the containers near by, while his own father and a few other men ran about the ship.

Aboard the other ship, a sleek, black dragon scuttled and slipped across the soaked wooden planks to where his brown haired teen was grappling with a rope from a sail, while trying to stay of his feet. The night fury grabbed hold of the rope above the boy's hands, a green eye turned back to him.

"Thanks bud." Hiccup half yelled over the gale.

The two tugged the rope, with little avail against the wind. Nearby, Stoic's meaty hands clamped around another rope. His helmet was askew, and his red beard was soaked through. He panted, looking over at his son.

In any less drastic situation, the chief would have beamed with pride, to see his son, now of nearly eighteen, putting such effort into keeping the ship afloat. Over the past few years, the boy had gone from a fish bone, to a nearly strapping lad. He, and the other vikings of Berk, had found that after Hiccup's great show of courage in uniting with the dragons and defeating the Red Death, if given the chance he could put just as much dedication into practicing more mundane or physical things. Between three month training periods in the academy, and nine month expeditions with the other men, he'd grown up quite a bit.

This was one such expedition, a short fishing trip before Hiccup, his dragon, and one or two of the other men would go to spread the word of dragon training. Unfortunately, the two ships had been caught in a storm that now tossed them up like a dragon with a fish.

A loud crack and boom shook the hulking man from his momentary distraction. Above them, a strike of lightning had hit the very top of the mast, setting it ablaze. Bits of flaming wood rained down on them, causing him to squint. In a desperate search for a solution, Stoic's eyes followed the rope in his hands, secured just below the burning part of the mast. If he could pull hard enough, it would break and fall over the side of the ship and into the sea.

"Hiccup, hold steady!" he called. "Pull hard!"

Hiccup's eyes widened, yet he nodded feverishly. He accepted that he's never understand some of his father's rash, physical decisions and this was one of them. With all his might, and Toothless' help, the three pulled hard on the ropes until they heard a loud crack through the wind's roar.

The thick piece of wood split in a jagged cut, the wind pushing it from its splintered ledge and then downward.

As Hiccup was breathing a sigh of relief, just about to call to his father, he heard the voice of his cousin from across the deck. For a second, he couldn't hear what was being said, and could only just make out Snotlout's fear stricken face and the basket in his arms fall to the deck. It was only when Stoic's bellow came that he realized what was happening.

"Son, move!"

Before he could even think, a great weight hit him full force in the chest and stomach. It was as if the chief himself had body slammed into him. Pain erupted from his chest and he was certain that some of his ribs had cracked under the impact. In a breathless pinch, he realized that the weight that was knocking him down was the fallen piece of the mast. He could barely comprehend what was behind him until the edge of the ship's side broke under the sudden push of his body and the mast.

Unable to bring air into his lungs, he panicked as he fell from the ship. His arms flailed and as he plummeted downward, he could hear a chorus of desperate screams of his name. Again his back was smacked with the force of the water, the churning current pushing him down, this way and that. Water flooded his lungs and he tried to kick and push himself upward to no avail.

Suddenly, in the darkness of the water, a black blur broke the surface above him. It struggled against the waves to reach him, then rise upwards.

"Toothless!" he gasped, coughing and spitting water for a moment before he was ducked under again.

The dragon brought him up again, struggling to put him on its back. Hiccup held onto Toothless' thick neck for dear life, blinking away the salty wetness in his eyes. Already they were farther from the boats than he would have expected. His stomach dropped as he realized that the dragon beneath him was having trouble keeping them afloat, they could never make it back to the others and flying was out of the question.

Heart sinking in fear, he pressed himself to the beast.

"Just stay up, bud, just keep swimming." he urged desperately.

* * *

A/N: So? What does everyone reading think? Too early to tell?

R&R

MTD


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Holy man! Check me out, all these lovely people enjoying this story!  
I'm glad to see I've gotten some helpful hints and encouragement, It keeps me a-writing!  
Thanks yous go out to all who reviewed, favorited and followed after the first chapter (TheDelta724, lovelyloupus, fictionadict24, Death Knight of Camelot, Ferdoos, PenBeatsSword, Renting, SidheWolf5, WLSN, Wisteria Moonseed, Ejsmommy, Psychick23, and anyone else I may have forgotten!)

This chapter sets our story in motion, it happens six-seven years after the apparent death of Hiccup and Toothless. The rest of our Berkian teens have grown up, some have married, some have not. Some are happy, and some are getting by. I hope you all enjoy what you see so far!

Disclaimer: I do not own How To Train Your Dragon.

* * *

Berk's worn path-roads were busy as the tribe worked to get ready for the oncoming freeze. The elders of the village had predicted that things would grow colder within the next few weeks, and that the weather would turn from bleak grey skies to frigid storms.

All about the streets, some vikings moved between stalls to buy up small things to keep themselves busy and fed, should a storm leave them home bound. From the docks, men and dragons alike carried baskets of freshly caught fish up to the Mead Hall, where women waited to salt and cure them. From the lesser of the haul, the dragons' large food troughs were being refilled, bringing in hungry mouths.

Some bulkier men, with the help of their reptilian companions, were re-enforcing homes and other buildings for when the freeze gripped the island.

Weaving through the clusters of people, workers, or groups of children, a young blond woman went about her day. With one icy glare, her blue eyes could send any naughty child or thumb-twiddling citizen on their way in a hurry. With an exasperated huff, she blew her hanging bangs from her face, using her free hand to fluff the messy bun at the nape of her neck. Within the brown leather satchel at her side, tinkled hacksilver and upon her back a large axe was strapped.

Her grey dress swished about her legs, hugging her upper body. She swore that as long as she lived, she would never grow accustomed to wearing such long dresses. In her mind, they were impractical, uncomfortable and utterly annoying.

"Astrid!"

A loud voice shook her from her dress-bashing thoughts. When she looked up, a taller, thin blond was heading her way. This woman did not weave, as she had, but instead pushed through people in her way. Stopping in front of her, she twisted the end of one of her braids roughly.

"Where you off to?" Ruffnut asked, grinning.

"The forge, I have to get a chip in my axe fixed." Astrid answered, looking at her friend quizzically. "Why? What're you up to?"

"Oh nothing." she shrugged. "Tuff is busy with 'Legs at the docks. I was wondering if maybe I could hang around you."

Ah yes, with Tuffnut helping haul in the fish, Ruffnut was more or less on her own for the day. After a moment of exaggerated though, Astrid sported a smug smile,

"Well, I suppose I could let you tag along." she said. "After my axe is fixed up we could go sparing in the woods?"

The other woman lit up like a child on Snoggletog and nodded her head excitedly. The sparing sessions between the two always offered the chance to waste some time and sweat. Maybe gain a new bruise or cut? Continuing to walk up the path towards the forge, the two chatted on about where to train, how their preferred weaponry was faring lately, and of the coming winter.

Upon reaching the forge, the smell of burning coal floated into the air, and the loud clanging of metal sounded loud and clear. At the entrance of the stuffy building, Ruffnut hurried in over the thresh, shouting a loud hello to the smith inside. Astrid paused, laying a hand on the door frame.

Peering inside she was greeted by a new thickness in the air, and a warmth from the furnace. The inside hadn't changed a bit, except for new weaponry and shields that hung on the walls. She watched as Ruffnut darted around, inspecting each with a curious blue eye. The sound of metal being placed into a trough of water caused her to look right towards the sizzling sound.

Gobber, blond beard paling and streaked with grey, gave her a lopsided grin before setting what looked to be a new blade down on the coal to heat again. He hobbled around a table, aging leg as stiff as his false limb.

"Astrid, ye' braw yer axe fer me?" he rasped, looking at the blade behind her head.

Nodding, she pulled his from its binding and moved to place it on the table for him.

"Its chipped here, and here." she said, indicating each space where metal ought to have been. "And, maybe because of the chips, the weight is unbalanced."

"Well, I'll see wha' I can do." he told her. "But s'been fixed up so many times.. Maybe ye' should get a new one? I don't know how much th' blade can take."

"Try your best." she said, pulling out a small bag of hacksilver which she placed in his open hand. "If it can't be fixed, we'll see."

The peg-legged blacksmith took the axe to another table to further assess it. Turning back to where Ruffnut was eagerly brandishing a dagger, Astrid rolled her eyes. "Come on, we'll go try some hand-to-hand while my axe is being repaired."

With a sigh, Ruffnut placed the blade back on the shelf and followed her out and into the street.

About an hour later, both women were in a higher area of Berk. It was a small enclave in a section of elevated forest set apart from some of the housing. After leaving the smithy, the two had sought out such a place to spare, shedding their dressings until they were down to leggings and under-tunics.

In the greyish light of the day, they circled each other for what seemed like the hundredth time. Sweat soaked the fronts of their tunics and their faces, even in the cool air. They panted heavily, puffs of stream rising on their breath.

In a flash, the two were clashing together. Hands clasped together, they pushed and twisted in a fight for dominance over the other.

It was only when the rattling hiss of a zippleback sounded, that the two broke apart. Pushing through the trees, two scaly green heads appeared, upon the neck of one a blond man. Sliding from his perch, he looked uncharacteristically frazzled and was running his hands through his still undreaded hair, mussing up its binding somewhat.

"Tuffnut?" Ruffnut straightened, giving her brother a confused look. "What's up? I thought you were with Fishlegs."

"I was," he said, chewing his lip. "We were about to carry up the last few baskets when... some kid ran up the shore yelling about finding a dead body in a net down the beach."

While Astrid's attention was peaked, as it was not often something of this sort happened, Ruffnut looked mildly enthused.

"Dead? like poke-able?" she asked eagerly.

"Well I thought so, I followed him to where he said it was." he started, growing animated as he spoke. "But when I went to pick the net off it, it... " He then made a strange, gargled noise in imitation.

"So whoever it is, is alive?" Astrid said in surprise. "What did you do? You didn't just leave them there did you?"

"No! I uncovered him, but... I-I sent the kid to get Stoic and Snot, then I came to find you guys.." he said, beginning to look more disturbed and pale. "It... it was like looking at a ghost.."

At the strange change in Tuffnuts demeanor, the two women shared glances of confusion and slight worry. What had been so strange, frightening or grotesque that he, of all the people on Berk, was so affected. When he continued, his voice was quiet.

"Down the beach, from the air.. I saw him too." he said. "Sprawled out in the sand, turning on its back... It had to be him too."

Stepping forward, Astrid placed a hand on his shoulder. "Who, Tuffnut?" she coaxed. "Who do you think it was?"

With a heavy swallow and a disbelieving expression.

"You wont believe me, b-but... I think... i-it have to be... _him_."

* * *

A/N: Oooooh, what do we think?  
And yes to clarify, I do indeed believe that after going so long without proper hygiene, Tuff's hair would probably bunch up into a set of dreadlocks. I suppose after a while he would have smartened up and started bathing a little more frequently, but damage would have been done. I sort of like the idea of him looking a little less "sleek" than others, its a little... dare I say... sexy? But dirty...  
Also, I'm going to suppose that the girls would have eventually had to grow up a bit and start acting a little more lady-like (as lady-like as vikings would go), but would probably still be eager to train and spar.  
There are a few hints of things, other than who our "mysterious" stranger may be, in here. Hints as to how things are going with everyone after a few years, can anyone pick up on them? ;)

See y'all next chapter!

R&R

MTD


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